Wreckage of ill-fated chopper recovered at Lake Nakuru after three-week search

Part of the ill-fated helicopter that was recovered at lake Nakuru.

Nakuru, Kenya: Divers from Kenya Navy have located the helicopter which crashed into Lake Nakuru after more than three weeks of search.

The helicopter crashed into the lake a few minutes after take-off from Jarika Hotel on October 21 morning with five people on board.

The five who were in the ill-fated helicopter owned and operated by Flex Air Charters included Apollo Malowa (pilot), Veronicah Muthoni, Sam Gitau, John Mapozi and Anthony Kipyegon.

Bodies of the pilot and Kipyegon were recovered in the first week of the search to the relief of parents who had camped at the Lake Nakuru National Park.

The search conducted by experts from various fields and professional divers drawn from Kenya Navy assisted by Kenya Rescue Divers and Kenya Life Savers has not been successful for the past 28 days.

Bodies of the pilot and Kipyegon were recovered on October 24, and buried with fate of three others remaining a mystery.

The search he noted has now been extended to the Southern part of the lake and it shall cover a larger circumference at the lake gradually.

The two magnetometers and sonar from Kenya Navy he said have only covered a quarter of the lake that translates to only 20 square kilometers. The lake is approximately 54 square kilometers after flooding witnessed in 2012.

The discovery of the helicopter is a sigh of relief for Families and friends of the three victims who have been missing following the ill-fated crash.